Noah Lyles is the flashiest, and the fastest, sprinter in the United States — maybe even the world.
We’ll all get to find out later this summer in Paris thanks to a come-from-behind victory for Lyles in the 100 meters at the U.S. track trials Sunday — a 9.83-second sprint that secured his spot at an Olympics where he has his sights set on electrifying his sport.
“Part of the plan, nothing’s changed,” Lyles said after the win. “It might be a shock to everybody else but when you know the goal, you know the goal.”
Lyles overcame a slow start to match his best time ever in the sprint that crowns the Fastest Man in the World.
He beat 200-meter specialist Kenny Bednarek by .04. Fred Kerley, the 2022 world champion, finished in third and will also go to Paris. Christian Coleman, the 2019 world champ, was in the lead with about 30 meters left but finished fourth.
The Lyles win makes the American sprint favorites two for two after three days of these trials. It comes a day after Sha’Carri Richardson also lived up to expectations and won the women’s 100 to earn her trip to Paris.
Both of these sprinters shine in their own way. Lyles is on a mission to lift up an entire sport that has been dimmer ever since Usain Bolt exited stage right after the Olympics in 2016.
In keeping with that theme, the 26-year-old Lyles showed up to Hayward Field in a neatly tailored sports coat and pants and was handed a box with his freshly pressed racing uniform. He wore white pearls for the race, and when he was introduced, he leaped and jumped about 30 yards down the track, imploring the crowd at Hayward Field to get on its feet.
Snoop Dogg was in the house and has watched some of the action with Lyles’ mother, who is almost as entertaining to watch as her son; up in the stands, she fell to her knees after he reeled in Kerley to his right, then Coleman and Bednarek to his left.
This marks the first national title in the 100 for Lyles, who has three 200-meter world titles but reimagined his goals after a disappointing third-place finish at the Tokyo Games in that race. Last year, the world saw the work start to pay off.
Lyles won the world championship at 100, 200 and the 4×100 relay last year in Budapest. His 100 time on a cool, still night at Hayward Field matched the time he ran to win worlds. If he can pull off the triple again, he would be in company with Bolt, the Jamaican great who went three for three all three times he raced at the Olympics.
“If I didn’t get third place in Tokyo, I wouldn’t have that desire, wouldn’t have that fire burning, wouldn’t have accomplished what I accomplished in the past,” he said. “And now, I constantly look to the future with open eyes because anything can happen.”
Lyles, who races next weekend for a spot in the 200, might even be in the mix to win four medals. No. 4 could come in the 4×400, and if he does that, he would be in the company of the likes of Carl Lewis and even Jesse Owens.